Scotch quail eggs

“I had never tried a Scotch egg before arriving in Britain. I was amazed at how many stores, delis, farmers' markets, cafes, restaurants and even highway rest stops served them! These soft-boiled eggs coated with pork mince reminded me so much of a dish I came across in South East Asia. The recipe used quail eggs, which I thought would work perfectly in my Scotch egg.” Luke Nguyen, Luke Nguyen's United Kingdom

Credit: Alan Benson

• serves

  4-6

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 12 quail eggs
• 200 g pork mince
• 25 g Thai red curry paste
• ½ bunch fresh coriander, finely chopped
• salt and freshly ground white pepper
• 100 g plain flour, seasoned with salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 free range eggs, beaten
• 2 tbsp milk
• 50 g natural breadcrumbs
  
• 50 g peanuts, finely chopped in a food processor 
  
• vegetable oil, for deep frying
• ½ bunch watercress
• 4 cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 Asian shallot, finely sliced
• 8 Vietnamese mint leaves
• 8 coriander leaves

Dressing

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar

Instructions

Combine all of the dressing ingredients and mix well. Set aside. 

Carefully place the eggs, still in their shells, in a pot of salted boiling water and simmer for 2 minutes. Drain and cool the eggs in an ice bath. When cooled, gently peel and set aside. 

Mix the pork mince with the Thai red curry paste and coriander in a bowl and season with salt and white pepper.

Divide this mixture into 12 balls and flatten each into an oval shape, about 8 cm x 9 cm. Place one meat oval on a piece of cling film, about 15 cm x 15 cm.

Dry the eggs with paper towels and then place one onto a sausage meat oval. Pick up the cling film square by its corners and use it to wrap the sausage meat around the egg. Make sure the coating is smooth and completely covers the egg. Remove the cling film and repeat this process with the remaining eggs. Place the Scotch eggs in the fridge to firm up for ten minutes. 

Prepare a crumbing station by adding flour to a wide bowl. In another bowl beat the two eggs with milk. On a large plate combine the peanuts with the breadcrumbs. Remove the Scotch eggs from the fridge and, working with one at a time, roll the balls first in the flour, then in the beaten egg mixture. Make sure the Scotch eggs are completely coated. To finish, roll the balls in the breadcrumb and peanut mixture, covering completely.  

Heat the oil to 180ºC. Carefully place the Scotch eggs into the hot oil and deep-fry for 4-5 minutes, turning occasionally until golden and crisp, and making sure the sausage meat is completely cooked. Carefully remove the eggs from the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Place the watercress on a serving platter then top with cherry tomatoes, Asian shallot, mint and coriander leaves. Slice the Scotch quail eggs in half and place on top of the salad. Spoon a few tablespoons of the dressing over the dish and serve. 

Photography by Alan Benson. Styling by Michelle Noerianto. Food preparation by Nick Banbury.

Luke Nguyen's United Kingdom starts Thursday 14 May 2015 at 8pm on SBS ONE and finishes 2 July 2015. Visit the Luke Nguyen's United Kingdom website to catch-up on episodes online, scroll through recipes or find out more about the show.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.